🍜 Soba Kakke

The northern parts of Iwate Prefecture are affected by the Yamase, a cold east wind, and the winter climate there is extremely cold. As a result, there were not so many rice paddy fields and different types of millets such as wheat and buckwheat were grown instead and ground into flour. “Soba Kakke” is a traditional dish born during the rule of the Nanbu clan. Buckwheat flour is kneaded and flattened, then cut into small triangles. The triangles of flour are boiled with daikon radish and tofu, and eaten with garlic miso. It has been a popular warm dish, served to guests and on other special occasions. In the past, “Kakke” referred to the black “Soba Kakke” made from buckwheat flour, but in recent years, the smooth texture of white “Mugi Kakke” made from wheat flour has also become popular. The word “kakke” is said to originate from the word “kakera”, meaning the pieces of dough that are cut off when making soba noodles, or from the phrase “ka, ke” meaning “now, please eat” in the local dialect.